British troops to leave Sangin this year, Liam Fox says

British troops will be withdrawn from the Sangin area of Afghanistan later
this year, Defence Secretary Liam Fox told MPs.

A Royal Marine on patrol at a weekly cattle market in SanginPhoto: JANE MINGAY

12:56PM BST 07 Jul 2010

He said the UK had agreed to a redeployment which will see US Marines assume responsibility for the area where nearly a third of UK deaths in the conflict have occurred.

The UK will concentrate its effort on the central part of Helmand province instead, in what he said would provide ''more manpower and greater focus'' on that area.

Dr Fox also said 300 extra British troops from a reserve battalion kept on stand-by in Cyprus would be deployed on a temporary basis until the switchover was complete - likely to be in October.

''The result will be a coherent and equitable division of the main populated areas of Helmand between three brigade-sized forces, with the US in the north and the south, and the UK-led Task Force Helmand, alongside our outstanding Danish and Estonian allies, in the central population belt,'' he told the Commons.

Plans for US Marines to replace British personnel have been under discussion since the start of the year when an American “surge” began, sharply increasing US numbers in Helmand.

Dr Fox said the UK "fully supported" the changeover in Sangin, which it had been closely consulted on by the Nato-led International Security and Assistance Force (Isaf).

And he paid tribute to the progress made as a result of British sacrifices there.

"In Sangin, UK forces have made huge progress in the face of great adversity. The district centre has been transformed.

"Helmand as a whole is a safer place as a result of our endeavours and sacrifices there. I pay tribute to those who have lost their lives in Sangin and those who continue to serve there."

The extra troops - which will come from the 2nd Battalion, the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment - would provide "additional flexibility to reinforce progress" in central Helmand, he said.

Sangin is the latest part of the district to be handed over from British to American control.

The town of Musa Qaleh was transferred in March and US Marines took charge of the strategically important Kajaki Dam last month.

Major General Richard Mills, of the US Marine Corps, assumed control of all Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) troops in Helmand on June 1 as part of a reorganisation of military command structures.

Nato commanders also discussed the possibility of moving the UK's 8,000 forces in Helmand to neighbouring Kandahar Province when Canada pulls out its contingent there next year.

But Dr Fox said last month it was "highly unlikely" this would happen, adding: "It is certainly not something that we will be proposing."

Senior military spokesman Major General Gordon Messenger said there would always be "a bit of Sangin" in the bloodstream of the Army and the Royal Marines.

But he said this should not outweigh Nato's "sensible" decision to redeploy military resources in southern Afghanistan.

"I accept that there is an attachment of the British Army and the Royal Marines to Sangin, which is born of spilt blood, a great deal of endeavour and some pretty tough sacrifices that have been made," he said.

"There will always be a bit of Sangin in the bloodstream of the British Army and the Royal Marines.

"What we can't do is allow that sentiment to outweigh what is sensible military reapportionment of resources to ensure that the capabilities that we have are best directed to achieve the mission's success."

US Marine Corps now has more than twice as many troops in Helmand as Britain.

Nato commanders have been reviewing their counter-insurgency mission in recent months. On a visit to London last month, Robert Gates, the US Defence Secretary, said: “The view of the British military is they probably don't have enough manpower to do that their areas of Helmand.”

Today’s announcement follows a change in the Afghan command structure that puts all troops in Helmand under the command of a US Marine Corps general.

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: “UK Forces continue to make real progress across Helmand including in Sangin, one of the most contested and challenging areas in southern Afghanistan.

“ISAF is responsible for ensuring the most effective allocation of international forces to deliver the campaign strategy in Afghanistan and the UK fully supports ISAF commanders in this aim.”